The Legend of Jean
by Wordcaster
Summary: Not your typical Time Travel fic. On 1976, in the wake of the First Wizarding War, the magical world has become a bleak place to live in. It will take an unprecedented event to disrupt the happenings of the dark times and bring back hope to its people.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: **All characters of the Harry Potter franchise belong to J.K. Rowling and Warner Brothers respectively. No profit is generated out of this writing activity.

**Prologue**

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><p><em>June 6, 1976 <em>

_Somewhere on the West of Germany._

The scene was one of unimaginable horror.

Multiple screams resounded as the small castle that housed Schweinfurz School of Sorcery was attacked by Death Eaters. Its protective wards defeated long ago, the dark wizards had laid waste to everything surrounding the structure. Many bodies of young students were now spread around the grounds, their faces forever frozen in expressions of surprise and pain.

They had been caught unaware by the attack as only moments before the young witches and wizards had been out, enjoying the afternoon of their last day of school. It would never have occurred to them that Death Eaters would soon blast away the barriers protecting their haven and begin an indiscriminate and savage killing spree.

With only two professors out in the grounds at that time, few students had the chance to flee back to the castle. Yet those who had actually made it soon found out that they hadn't been lucky at all.

After making quick work of everyone outside, the seven culprits of the mass killings had charmed the castle so that no one could escape from it. The frightened people huddled inside found out the intention of their attackers when not soon after a multitude of _Bombarda_ spells were cast at the walls, which without its magical protection, quickly began to crumble. The students and faculty trapped inside cried out, desperately scrambling out of the way of falling debris.

"Please! Have a heart! We have children with us!" The voice of the School's Headmaster pleaded from the inside.

"You should have thought of that before daring to deny the Dark Lord! Your fate will be an example of his might!"

And with grins on their faces, the Death Eater blasted at the school, one of them casting a serpent _Fiendfyre_ that coiled and covered the toppling structure. From the inside, the tortured screams of the trapped victims could be heard to the very end, when with a dying groan, Schweinfurz Castle finally crumbled to the ground. As silence fell on the premises, the Death Eaters pocketed their wands, secure in their knowledge that no one had survived.

"Well that didn't take long." said one of the masked wizards with a tinge of amusement.

"Rosier" called another one. "You wanted to do the honors right?"

The Death Eater called Rosier grinned under his mask and nodded.

"_Morsmordre!_"

The Dark Mark shone with a green brightness over the burning remains of the school as the sun slowly sunk and the skies darkened. The Death Eaters took a moment to stand and admire the results of their work.

They were chatting amongst themselves, smugly comparing some of their killings when it happened.

There was a small spark on the fields nearby. At first unnoticeable, but as it grew in size and sound it rapidly caught the attention of the seven men. They approached the phenomenon with curiosity, watching as a ball of unknown energy buzzed and crackled while growing in size and brightness. As the winds picked up, the dark wizards soon grew wary and pulled out their wands, sensing the amount of power that was building up.

Just as they prepared to unleash strong curses, the luminosity produced by the energy ball reached its eye blinding peak. The wizards only had a second to react, eyes widening in astonishment.

Miles away a wizarding family out farming their fields stopped dead in their chores as they all heard the muffled sound of a far off explosion. On the horizon, green light tinged the sky.


	2. Miracle girl

**Chapter 1: Miracle girl**

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><p>Aurors of the Order of the Phoenix started apparating on the grounds of what was formerly a small wizarding school. They immediately were startled still upon taking in the scene of the massacre. The bodies of children strewed about the blackened fields creating a nightmarish picture before their eyes.<p>

They had arrived too late. There was nothing left there. Only fire and death.

Still, the aurors jolted themselves to action, moving about the many corpses in the hopes of finding a survivor. But with each dead body they checked and confirmed, the flame of their optimism was slowly and surely doused with desolation.

Among the sober faced aurors was Albus Dumbledore. The old wizard's heart ached with every child's face he encountered. He couldn't help but think that this abominable crime could happen to his students at Hogwarts. Voldemort had known well the kind of message an attack like this would send to him and to the wizarding world. No one was safe from his reach.

The thought ignited anger in him he hadn't felt since he was very young.

It didn't take long for Ministry officials and reporters to start arriving, many of them gasping and gagging once they noticed the dead. The attack would surely be front page news by tomorrow, creating more terror inside the hearts of the wizarding world.

"Albus!"

The aforementioned wizard looked up as Order Auror Fabian Prewett called for him. The queer expression painting the redhead's face catched the old wizard's attention.

"I think that you should see this."

Albus walked to where the man was standing over a small hill. Once there, he saw exactly what had his fellow Order member so discomposed.

The inert bodies of seven masked Death Eaters laid in a semi circle, all their chests smoking with the residues of the spell that felled them. At the center, in front of their bodies, laid another smaller body.

Albus carefully made his way towards the crumpled form, noticing that the ground beneath it was melted. As he closed in, he distinguished that the body was that of a young girl, and not only that, the girl was still breathing!

"Quick! Call a Healer!" ordered the bearded wizard with urgency to which Prewett was quick to obey.

As the other wizard ran off with shouts of help, Dumbledore crouched over the terribly injured but alive, so alive young witch. The girl stirred, eyes fluttering for a moment before opening a crack. Hazel eyes gazed out with unnatural innocence.

"It's alright child. You're safe."

And in the girl's eyes Dumbledore saw unhindered trust and complacency before they shut close.

It was a miracle.

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**Seven in one! **

**The miraculous story of the German girl-wonder.**

**By Maurice Carneirus**

The front page of the June 7, 1976 copy of the Daily Prophet garnered massive amounts of attention as wizards and witches everywhere avidly read the accounts that took place the day before. The grimness of the Schweinfurz massacre was overshadowed by the incredible story of one young girl who had bravely stood before seven grown and powerful wizards and defeated them with one blow. The girl, the sole survivor of the attack, was being treated at St. Mungo's for the grave injuries she acquired on the confrontation.

Though her name had yet to be revealed, as all student documents perished with the school, her story of perseverance and triumph against impossible odds had created a wave of euphoria and hope amongst all the inhabitants of the magical world. The streets were loud with murmurs and rumors of the event. Some called it a sign that the dark times being experienced were about to change for the better.

At Hogwarts, the students were up in an uproar inside the Great Hall. Many of them had copies of the Prophet and were enthusiastically discussing it with anyone that chanced upon them. In the more rowdy Gryffindor table, four young men sat around their own copy of the paper, their eyes devouring the story.

"Finally!" exclaimed a curly haired teenager of about fifteen years. "Someone stood up to those bastards! This is legend!"

"You believe this?" questioned another boy with a smidge of doubt. This one had chestnut hair and a slightly sick countenance.

"Why shouldn't I? It says it right there in black and white. It even names the Death Eaters that were found, though Rosier and Nott's name were no surprise. Their berk kids are just about the same."

"Yeah, which is why they're not looking too happy." said the boy with mousy brown hair, his eyes twitching nervously to the Slytherin table were a glower had fallen over many of its occupants. It was particularly noticeable in those whose fathers had been identified as some of the slain Death Eaters.

"It's absolutely brilliant." whispered the final boy who wore glasses and sported a rowdy mop of black hair.

He was still looking at the story and the picture that accompanied it. In it, Hogwarts Headmaster Albus Dumbledore was carrying the miracle girl in his arms with members of the Order of the Phoenix coming to his aide from behind.

"What do you reckon is going to happen to her now though?"

"After they find her parents, Dumbledore will probably get her some protection. I'd reckon You-know-who is not too happy with the news either." answered the first boy.

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Dumbledore watched from behind a glass window as the girl, who had wakened an hour before, sat dumbly on her hospital bed. Most of the strange wounds that covered the girl's body had been tended to and were in the process of healing. The Healers that attended her had diagnosed them as highly uncommon splinching injuries, some of which had even been found around her organs. The girl would not be able to walk or move any of her limbs properly while the healing took place.

But that was not what was troubling him. What was creating unrest in the mind of the old wizard was the fact that the girl's brain was amongst the organs damaged and because of that, the poor child had absolutely no memories. When she had woken up, the Healers questions to her were answered with child-like parroting.

The girl didn't know how to speak.

This was truly a saddening turn of events as he had been hoping to find out who her parents were. None of the wizards confirmed as parents of Schweinfurz students had recognized her. Without the child's own voice, the only clue to her identity now was the melted remains of a silver bracelet whose only identifiable thing was the word 'Jean'.

The mystery now was, who was Jean?

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><p><strong>AN:** I've been having some serious writer's block in the last chapter of my Buffy fic. Whilst trying to generate enough inspiration to write the final scene I don't know why, this idea randomly popped into my mind. And since it wouldn't let me concentrate on my Buffy fic, I decided to write it down and post it to get it out of my system. I have a vague outline of how I would proceed and develop the plot (which is huge) but future updates would probably depend on how well liked the story is.


	3. At the Hospital

**Chapter 2: At the Hospital**

The girl, now called Jean by everyone who knew of her, had made a habit of impressing many of her Healers on a daily basis.

Before, almost everyone had thought that the cerebral damaged found on her and the complete lack of any memories would relegate the young prodigy to a sad life in the Janus Thickey Ward. But to their surprise, it only took the child two days of watching and listening to them to learn how to speak again. The next day she was taking her first steps, awkward and bumbling like those of a babe's walk, but with the help of crutches she had rapidly relearned the capacity of her body's movements.

In a matter of days, the girl had quickly become a favorite amongst the St. Mungo's staff. She had developed a charming personality full of insatiable curiosity. Once she understood her condition, she had become anxious to regain everything she had lost and so spent most of her time passionately reading amidst a large pile of leathery tomes. Most of the books in it had been gifts from her growing fan base of Prophet readers who were closely following her story through the paper.

It was the story of the decade. Once the reporters had found out that the girl was amnesiac and no family had come forward, even after a picture of her had been published in all major wizarding newspapers, the press had a field day. It took a massive effort on the part of the Healers at St. Mungo's and some presiding Ministry officials to keep the public from filling up the medical halls. New security measures had to be designed and applied to keep her and the other patients safe.

The biggest problem now was that con artists everywhere were stepping up and posing as the supposed parents of the famous Wonder-girl. It was all in a bid to become instant celebrities. Witches, wizards and even magical creatures came with doctored photographs and fake birth certificates as evidence of their alleged relation to Jean. It was a circus that disgusted many of the Healers at St. Mungo's, particularly those who had grown to know and care for the kind and vivacious girl.

One of these Healers was Margaret Mckinnon. She was in charge of helping Jean with her physical therapies but always took a little time after they were done to comb the girl's long hair. It had a tendency of getting easily tangled with the slightest activity.

"What is…_cherry_? " asked the girl with knitted brows, the word strangely pronounced as she read it from her current book.

"It's a fruit child. You eat it. Quite tasty in many pie recipes. Why my sister makes one that can enchant your tongue with its taste for several hours." The Healer paused in thought. "Though that may've not been such a good idea as my brother Murray almost ate his tongue one time."

Jean sat perplexed, looking down at her book. It was supposed to be about potions so she was a bit confused why it talked of food as well. As she contemplated the conundrum, a sudden thought, or more or less a sudden feeling bloomed in her mind. As it did, her previous dilemma suddenly sounded quite stupid to her, since she clearly knew that cherries were used in a variety of concoctions like Invisibility potion and Polyjuice.

Polyjuice! How could she forget one needed cherries for brewing Polyjuice. To her it felt like forgetting you needed a wand to cast spells. Common knowledge. Yet, now that she pondered it, she didn't exactly remember where she'd read about Polyjuice…

Jean blinked herself out of her stupor, one hand coming to massage her forehead as she predicted one of her headaches would be peeking out soon. Moments of illumination like the one she had just now had been common all throughout her stay in the Hospital. She knew that her conscious mind was only a couple of weeks old, but she _understood_ she had lived more. A lifetime more.

These things that came to her mind at random were most probably part of her lost memories. Though they almost always caused her head pains afterwards, she was happy when she experienced them and treasured every time it happened as it was another step forward in her quest to find out who she was.

Jean winced as the matronly woman's brush caught on to a persistent knot.

"I'm sorry dear. You have a rather peculiar mane of hair. But don't worry I'm almost done."

"It's alright. Is just…I have a bit of a headache. Again."

"Oh then let's close up those books. You lay down while I get you a Sleeping Draught."

"But—"

"Now, no buts." Healer Mckinnon ordered sternly. "It's for your own good. You're condition is still delicate and we can't have you overexerting yourself."

"…Alright." Jean murmured morosely, gathering her books to place them on the room's bookshelf.

The homely looking Healer smiled at her gently, helping the girl get tucked into the bed.

"I'll be right back."

The Healer exited the private room. Given her notoriety, the Hospital had considered it prudent to separate the famous patient from their other sick residents. This also impeded people from 'accidentally' wandering on to the girl while on a visit of a loved one.

As she walked into the hall, the woman suddenly bumped into a robed body that had been making its way to the room. The Healer prepared herself to reorient yet another 'lost' visitor when instead of a snooping wizard, she found the twinkling blue eyes of Albus Dumbledore.

"Headmaster Dumbledore! You...I wasn't aware you were visiting us today. If I'd known—"

"No worries dear Healer. It is my fault actually, for not flooing in advance. I come bearing gift for our most esteemed and well behaved patient." he said with a smile, in his hands he held a large box brimmed with textbooks. It surely had to have been charmed weightless as the centennial wizard held it with an ease that disguised its heavy contents.

"Oh she'll love them. Though she certainly has accumulated quite a lot."

"These are different."

"Are they? How so?"

"They are rather more for studying than pleasure."

"I believe to her they'll still seem like pleasure. She's a very smart child. Picks up some things so fast sometimes it baffles me."

"Indeed. One would almost think that she's remembering rather than relearning."

"It could be. I very well hope so. She does not deserve to live her life in a hospital." she confessed in a sad tone before perking up. "Alright, you may stay for a little while, but don't tire her out." The Healer declared the last bit in her best matronly voice.

"Of course. I'll be just a moment to drop this off."

Healer Mckinnon nodded to the wise wizard and departed down the hall to procure a Sleeping Draught. With a swish of his wand Albus Dumbledore opened the door and went into the room. Its sole occupant jerked in surprise at his entrance, quickly hiding a small book behind her pillow. Dumbledore's lip quirked at this.

"Uh…Hello."

The girl looked at him, a guilty expression painting the face behind the unruly curls of her light brown hair.

"Hello child." he greeted in a gentle and warm voice. "There's no reason to hide your book from me."

Jean's eyes widened.

"I won't tell." he added in an impish tone. "Even better, I've brought more."

The brunette girl perked up as the box of books was deposited in a nightstand by her bed. She crawled towards it, her fingers gracing the thick covers. While her eyes perused some of the titles, she felt excitement bubble up inside. These were not just books. They were school textbooks. The information held inside them would make her quest of relearning and fitting back into society a great deal easier.

"Thank you!" she cried full of sincerity, already opening one titled _Intermediate Transfiguration_. "These are most wonderful."

"I am glad that you find them so."

The brunette smiled at him. She took in his kind weathered features, examining the way his periwinkle blue eyes gleamed with a hidden wisdom. And his smile, it made her feel as if everything would be alright.

She felt…complete trust towards his person. It was something she had yet to feel with anyone else she'd encountered.

"…I know you…right?"

Dumbledore remained silent for a moment, scrutinizing the injured girl.

"You may have heard of me. I am Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

Jean's brows jumped. She _had _read about him on the newspaper. And how couldn't she recognize him. He was the wizard carrying her in the picture!

"You're the wizard-…The-the one who saved me." Her voice filled with amazement and gratefulness.

"Oh ho, I just arrived in time to give you a lift. I believe the saving you did all on your own. Quite a feat if you ask me." The great wizard sounded impressed.

Jean smiled shyly and ducked her head.

"I know. I don't remember but I've read it on the papers." Then she frowned as another thought crossed her mind. "Has anyone…recognized me? I mean, maybe a family friend o-or a neighbor perhaps?"

Dumbledore saddened at her expectant and hopeful tone.

"Unfortunately no. Not yet."

The brunette deflated, looking downtrodden.

"Have no worries my dear. We are still looking."

"I've been here for almost two months already. If my family hasn't come then…Will I stay here forever?"

"Nonsense child. If the situation is not resolved by August then I will personally make sure to find someone to care for you. Though I've heard you are not short of volunteers."

"Oh. Yes. Margaret doesn't like them much."

"She can be very…sensitive, when it comes to her patients."

"She's nice. She tells me stories. Most are about her family, which I'm starting to think are a bit mental."

"That they are." intervened the Healer in question as she came in. In her hands she carried a vial with purple concoction.

"Margaret! I wasn't—The Headmaster gave me these books—"

"And you'll enjoy them later." The matronly woman interrupted, packing the books with a quick wand movement. "Now, it's time to rest. You've had quite the straining day and we want those wounds to heal properly, don't we? Bottom's up!"

Jean only had a chance to open her mouth before the Healer was pouring the Sleeping Draught down her throat. The effects were felt soon after.

"Come on, Headmaster. Let's leave her to rest."

"Goodbye Headmaster." Jean called sleepily. "It was nice meeting you."

"You as well." He smiled gently, eyes wrinkling behind his half-moon glasses.

As soon as she closed her eyes, both the Healer and the wise wizard departed the room, leaving the girl to her recuperative sleep.

"Poor girl. She acts so cheerful and carefree. But I know she must be hurting. Merlin, she's still a child and she hasn't a thing in the world."

"It saddens me too. The times are very dark when children are purposely made to experience such hardships."

The kind Healer nodded her ascent.

"I've seen her reading the Prophet every time one of those frauds with their lies gets their five minutes of spotlight. They should be taken to Azkaban, the lot of them! Playing with a tragedy like they are."

"In this case her exceptional fame has brought her more trouble than it's worth."

"That's what happens when you do the impossible. To this day it still astounds me that such a young girl could have killed seven of them. At once no less."

"Not only that. The biggest problem is _who_ she felled. They were high ranking Death Eaters. Two of them original Knights of Walpurgis. I'd imagine _he_ was not too pleased when he heard the news."

"Goodness! If that is so then…what if h-he tries something?"

"That is something that worries me. With the status of her identity unresolved, she has become a ward of court. Anybody persistent enough and with the right connections could easily gain custody over her. And many dangerous people have the right connections, which is the reason why I must act promptly. I've been meaning to question, can you her age be determined?"

"Oh yes. Examinations of her organs and bones have given us proof enough. We estimated her to be around 16 to 18 years at the most."

"16 would be most excellent."

"Why?"

"The girl needs protection" he said gravely "And to me, Hogwarts would be the safest place."

When Dumbledore flooed out of the Hospital and to his office, a variety of contemplations rambled around his mind. There were urgent preparations to be made in order to assure the safety of the girl.

It was a shame that no school records from Schweinfurz had survived. It would complicate matters; though he had an old friend in the Division for Magical Education that may be able to help him with that problem. Surely Madam Marshbanks would not be too bothered to pay a house visit.

He would be counting on the girl's bright mind to study the books he'd given her and learn back enough knowledge to at least pass seven O.W.L.s . That way she could qualify to enter as a sixth year Hogwarts student by next term.

That would then leave the child's custody as the other obstacle in need of solving. He had given the girl some hope by telling her they were still looking but in reality, he personally thought that the case was a lost cause. By now, if her family hadn't come for her after so much time had passed, they were either muggles or they were dead. Pictures of her had been discretely disseminated throughout the muggle authorities, and still no one had come forward.

It brought him to think that maybe her family might have been at the attack. Lamentably there were others who thought like him as well, and saw this as an opportunity.

Albus couldn't let that girl fall on wicked hands.

With a decision in mind, he grabbed his floo powder pot. A pinch of it was thrown into his fireplace which burst in emerald flames. Thrusting his head inside, he calmly called out, "The Burrow!"

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><p><strong>AN:** I think the mystery of Jean should be fairly obvious for the readers. I found it tiresome that almost every timetravel fic had a cliché formula that was repeated over and over again. Accident involving either a spell or a time turner, panic in the past, meet Dumbledore, go to Hogwarts. So I wanted to break away from the comfortable and present a slightly different turn of events.

Coming up next: Hogwarts! And the inevitable meeting with our favorite group of jerkasses, the Marauders.


	4. OWLs and Sorting

**Chapter 3: O.W.L.s and Sorting**

*Ding*

Lucius Malfoy stepped off the lift and walked the dark halls of the Ministry of Magic's ninth level. He headed purposely toward the room at the very end, the soles of his fine dragon-hide shoes clacking loudly against the tiled floor. As he passed an adjacent hallway, a wizard coming from there almost stumbled upon him.

"Would you watch—Ah, Rookwood."

"Young Lucius." greeted the grey haired wizard with a toothy smile. "I see you're in a pleasant mood. As always."

"One can't be helped but be a little on edge these days. Times such as these bring out the worst moods in people."

"They do don't they. Especially when it affects one's work. For the past months, the Department of Mysteries has been inundated with all manner of evidence collected from the Schweinfurz site. I tell you, going over every singularity has made for some very tedious and harrowing work hours."

"A necessary burden to bear in such a case. A lot of people have a great desire to know _exactly_ what happened on that fateful night…as you must well know." Lucius looked at him pointedly.

The pockmarked old wizard seemed to sober in an instant, his genial smile vanishing.

"I do. But lamentably answers don't fall off broomsticks. Just now I've been ordered to release custody of the wand found on the girl." He gestured towards a slim rectangular box he'd been holding.

Lucius frowned. "That should be a vital piece of evidence. Is it wise to surrender it so soon?"

"Be it wise or not, the Minister has already signed the order. Seems the girl is getting released from the Hospital and so it's in need of it."

"But surely the fact that this wand participated in the unusual killings of seven grown and powerful wizards would warrant a more..careful approach."

"All sorts of inspection and verification spells have been done to it. The whole Unspeakable team worked on it day and night and though it, and the robes she'd been wearing, were coated in minute traces of unidentifiable magic, we still didn't find any hard evidence to justify keeping the wand."

The pockmarked man opened the box and with careful fingers, plucked the wand from its notch.

"Seems like a normal wand. Vine with Dragon Heartstring core. Good craftsmanship too. More Ollivander's style than Gregorovitch's. But that old fool Ollivader didn't remember ever having made one like it."

"Dragon Heartstring? They've been known to boost the power of spells." mused Lucius.

"Yes, but the last spell that wand did was a sealing charm. And the girl certainly didn't seal them to death." said Rookwood with a derisive tone.

Lucius gritted his teeth as a wave of annoyance washed over him. "Then perhaps her mind will provide us with something more concrete. I was heading for court to question the state of my custody petition. Once I get granted we should be—"

"Oh _that_ isn't happening." The Unspeakable snorted as his previous teasing smile made a comeback.

"...and why is that?"

"Because Arthur Weasley and his wife beat you to the punch. Or more or less Dumbledore did, with his impressionable recommendations. One good word from him and the Wizengamot ruled in Weasley's favor."

A thunderous frown twisted the blonde's regal features, his hand tightening on his cane with restrained fury.

"Weasley."

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At the Burrow, Dumbledore and the Weasley family waited by the fireplace for the arrival of their new ward. There was an air of nervousness surrounding the young red-haired parents. Every few minutes, Arthur would display his disquiet through jittery movements of his feet and shuffling of his sleeping 4-year old son Charlie. Meanwhile, the heavily pregnant Molly would find some smudge to wipe in the furniture nearby or invisible dust to fuss over in her children's clothes, much to little Bill's displeasure.

"Moooom, I'm clean already." complained the 6 year old.

Dumbledore made an effort to pacify the woman when she scourgified the same chair for the third time. "There is no need to worry so much, Molly dear."

"I can't help it. I mean this girl,…it was a horrible thing what happened! And she was so brave. But…are we really the best people to care for her? Out of all?" She looked down in hesitance, her small hands twisting the cloth of her modest robes. "It's just, with the baby coming, and the kids as well….we..we don't have much to offer her."

Dumbledore watched her with sage like expression. "Molly, for what this girl needs, right now _you_ have in abundance. A warm home filled with love."

"That we do." Arthur smiled widely throwing his free arm over his bashful wife. "Also, knowing that we stopped Lucius Malfoy from ever getting his no-good hands on that innocent girl brings a hop in my steps. Besides, the Weasley family hasn't had a girl in centuries. It would be a pleasant change."

Just then, the fireplace flared, warning the waiting people of an incoming floo. As the fires brightened, the girl named Jean emerged in a burst of ashes, falling to the floor in a daze. Molly immediately went to the disoriented girl, helping her get up and dust off her clothes.

"Th-thank you." The brunette then noticed the ring of soot she'd tracked all around her. "I'm sorry for the mess. I've just never done this before."

"You never flooed?" asked little Bill incredulously. "Are you a muggle?"

"Bill! You don't say things like that!" Molly turned to Jean with embarrassment coloring her face. "I'm sorry dear, he didn't mean anything by it."

But the brunette witch did not hear her as she had remained staring at the 6 year old toddler in a trance. Suddenly, a tear sprang from one of her lost eyes and slipped down her face. Jean blinked, touching her wet cheek in confusion.

"Why is she crying?" asked Bill, followed by a concerned "Are you alright?" from Arthur.

"I..yes, I.. I don't know why that happened." And she really didn't. Somehow seeing the little boy had brought a temporary and strange tightness inside her chest. Then from nowhere, that tear had slipped out.

It was a new experience. Until now, she'd only ever shed tears in her early physical therapies.

"Oh….perhaps some ashes got in your eye then." Molly smiled to assure the befuddled girl.

Dumbledore cleared his throat, calling the attention of the room's occupants.

"I believe some introductions are in order. Ms. Jean, these are Arthur and Molly Weasley along with their sons Bill and Charlie." He gestured to each one of them and the red-heads beamed back upon hearing their names, all except the young Charlie, who despite all the commotion, remained sleeping peacefully on his father's shoulder. "The Weasleys have agreed to be your sponsors and share their name with you. They shall be your caretakers while we search for your family."

Jean grinned at them with enthusiasm. "It's good to meet you all. I promised I won't be a bother. I can help with chores a-and the boys if you wish."

"Oh you don't have to do that." replied Molly.

"But I want to. Please. You've all shown me such kindness, taking me in. Naming me…It's the least I could do."

"Sweetie, you just make sure to study hard so that you pass your O.W.L.s."

"That's right. You only have a few days left to prepare." added Mr. Weasley "And you don't want to miss out on going to Hogwarts."

Jean nodded with vehemence. Somehow, being in this cozy house, seeing this happy family….She had an identity now. She was Jean Weasley. And deep down, she curiously felt that even though her family had yet to be found, she was on the right path. This people were right for her.

The new addition to the Weasley family spent the next week reviewing her textbooks. She had studied them thoroughly when she was at the Hospital, but a part of her feared that her efforts might still not be enough. Failure seemed to her like a very real possibility, and the thought scared her into compulsively going over and memorizing every detail she encountered on the books. She would work herself into a fit over the smallest thing she'd forget.

It didn't help that young Bill had taken a liking to teasing and playing pranks on her. Charlie was a shyer boy, and tended to go quiet whenever she entered any room he was in. But Bill was another thing. Jean had become a new fascination for him, being someone old, but not too old like his parents were. Although she sometimes became deeply annoyed by his interruptions, she didn't know why, but one look in the boy's small freckled face instantly doused any sentiments of retribution. It was an advantage the little boy perceived quickly. And like any decent unruly rascal, he used and abused it.

By the time the examiners from the Ministry arrived at the Burrow in mid-August, she was a wound-up ball of nerves. They visited the entire week, providing her with written and practical tests that left her exhausted each day, sometimes with a pulsing headache. The only reprieve she had was that during that week, Bill had been explicitly prohibited from bothering her while she rested. Still, she was immensely glad when all the testing was finished. She'd been told by a Professor Griselda Marchbanks that since she was the only student left to be evaluated, she would receive word from them by next week.

It was the longest week she'd lived in her short life.

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_August 28, 1976_

Griselda Marchbanks flooed into the Hogwarts Headmaster's office, carrying with her a green velvet bag. She promptly sat down on a conjured seat and gazed at the Headmaster with an uncanny expression.

"Well," inquired Dumbledore after a moment had passed without a sound from his old friend. "How did Ms. Weasley perform?"

The witch opened her mouth to reply but stopped right after, at a loss for words. She shook her head and with a breath, recomposed herself.

"Albus…If I didn't believe the Prophet before, I certainly believe it now. This girl _is _a wonder. You told me she only had one month to study _five years_ of schooling. The most I expected were Acceptables, but this…"

With tremulous hands, the older woman removed a thick brown envelope from within the folds of her bag. It hadn't yet been sealed with the wax insignia of the Wizarding Examination Authority and so Dumbledore was able to remove its contents.

His brows lifted upon seeing the results. "This is indeed a curious occurrence."

"Curious? I would say magnificent! Her wand work on the practicals was flawless. The movements almost seemed to come natural. Why if it wasn't for that P in Divinations then she would've had a perfect score! And you of all persons know _who_ was the last wizard to achieve twelve Outstandings with such ease."

The bearded wizard reclined back into his high chair, fingers steepling, he's blue eyes pierced Madam Marchbanks from behind his half-moon glasses. "I believe Ms. Weasley will grow to do great things."

"Then let us hope they are of the good variety."

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_September 1, 1976_

The Great Hall at Hogwarts bustled with the sound of laughter and the chatter of friends amicably greeting each other after a long break. Many of the students from the four Hogwarts houses were already sitting at their respective tables, awaiting the grand Start of Term banquet. Sorting had already taken place and some of the hungriest students were grumpily questioning the delay of the food. The most astute and perceptive students noticed the fact that Professor McGonagall had remained standing besides the stool where first years sat to be sorted. The Sorting Hat was held firmly in her hands.

Dumbledore stood up from his place at the table and walked to the pulpit where he usually gave his speeches. The young witches and wizards quickly quieted in favor of listening to what their Headmaster had to say.

"Students of Hogwarts, as most of you most know by now, this summer gave us a historic turn of events."

Murmurs quickly roused amongst the students as they understood what Dumbledore meant.

"A terrible and unspeakable tragedy occurred. Because of it, an entire school of magic has been vanished from existence. Many innocent lives were lost. Families have mourned their children."

The occupants of the hall sobered. Some of them thought of loved ones they'd lost in the years. Others thought of their families and how they feared something might happen to them while they were at school.

"But, something else happened. Like a ray of sunlight breaking through the thick clouds of a tempest…a miracle grazed the wizarding world. One young girl…survived. It is because of that, that Hogwarts is now proud to become her host and welcome her with open arms into our community."

As soon as the words left his mouth, the hall exploded, this time with louder murmurs. The great doors at the entrance of the hall opened and all students swiveled in their seats to watch. Hagrid, the Gamekeeper, marched into the hall. And walking just a little behind him, was the fabled wonder girl which many recognized from pictures in the Daily Prophet.

Jean walked behind her large escort with even steps, though her insides were going crazy with everything that was happening. From all around her she felt the students staring and heard them talking about her with the people next to them. Comments like "That's her!" "I thought she was going to Durmstrang." and "She looks smaller in person." ran across the hall.

The walk to the sorting stool felt like a type of gauntlet run. Jean was relieved when she reached the end. There, the half-giant bade her goodbye and a strict looking woman gave her tight smile gesturing her to sit on the stool. After she sat, Jean felt her place upon her the wrinkly old hat she'd been holding.

_Hmmm, this is very curious._

She jolted when the hat began talking inside her head. After a second she dared answered back.

"…W-what is?"

But the hat ignored her question and continued with its musing.

…_..Weasley is it. But is by name. If not I would have known were to put you….._

_Anywhere would be nice._ she thought, her eyes parading over the many faces that stared expectantly at her. They were all grouped by four different colors. The houses of Hogwarts. Although their names escaped her mind at the moment, the only thing that mattered to her was that the people in them were all part of something. She wished to become a part as well.

…_.Your mind, it is hard to read. All broken. But still…I see intelligence. Thirst for achievements. A desire to be recognized, yes?_

She nodded distractedly, her attention still lost amongst the crowd of students. She then sighted a boy in one of the tables. His face had made her halt her crowd watching, eliciting feelings inside her she couldn't really described. For some reason, she wanted to be near him.

_Alright. I decided on_ "RAV—"

"Wait!" she cried, stopping the hat's shout with her own. The crowd of students shifted in their seats and whispered to each other at the unusual sorting.

_There is no need to shout Ms. Weasley. I can hear your thoughts._

_Oh..sorry. It's just…I wish to be on the red house._

_Gryffindor?_

_Yes. That one. If is not too much trouble…I..I like to be there._

_Hmmm…you can do well in Gryffindor too…and maybe Weasley is not just a name. Very well then…_

"GRYFFINDOR!"

There had been a small silence and then the table on the inner left sprang in thunderous cheers and whistles. The other houses clapped politely, Slytherin being the least animated.

To her surprise, the strict woman that took the hat back gave her a wide smile and told her with a soft Scottish brogue to join her new housemates. Jean made her way along the table, receiving many enthusiastic handshakes and pats on the back. A lot of the Gryffindors offered her a seat, but she had already made her mind on where to go.

The boy wasn't exactly looking at her, so she only saw his profile. She sat on the seat besides his, surprising him and the boys nearby.

"Hi!" she called.

"Hi." he responded, eyes wide behind his glasses.

There was an awkward pause in which people sitting around them watched their interaction with curiosity. The brunette girl then extended her hand in greeting.

"I'm Jean."

He smiled, confidence returning. "I'm James. James Potter. And these are my mates Sirius , Remus and Peter."

She gave the other boys a smile and greeted them each. Peter was so speechless he barely managed to stutter back a shy "Hi". Sirius, who had been sitting on the other side of James, quickly slid closer to speak to her.

"I've got to say after I read that first article, you became my second favorite person in the whole world."

"I'm…flattered?" she said, not knowing well how to answer.

"Aw Padfoot" James leaned onto the curly haired boy at his side "You make me blush. I'm the first right?"

Sirius pushed him off. "No you poof, _I_'m the first."

"You can't be first of your own list!"

"You can if you are as vainglorious as Sirius." commented Remus, who was sitting on the seat across.

"Right!...wait, what was that?"

Sirius narrowed his eyes at the brown haired boy, who made an effort to sip his pumpkin juice and look innocent.

"So did you really fire seven killing curses at once?" suddenly inquired Peter.

"Peter!" the other boys shouted at the short boy, who immediately seemed cowed.

"You dolt, don't you know she doesn't remember?" said Sirius.

"S-sorry. I forgot."

"Don't worry. People ask me that all the time. They always seem so excited to know. I wish I could answer them. It seems really important to them."

"I'm not surprised. I believe there isn't a corner of the Wizarding world who _doesn't_ know who you are." opined Sirius. "You are the talk of every social circle."

Jean grimaced.

"What's wrong?"asked James. His concerned look brought back the strange feeling she felt when she first noticed him. But before she could understand what it meant, the feeling was gone.

"It's just…everyone is going to be expecting so many great things from me. I'm afraid I might not live up to this..wonder-girl image. I've only really known about magic for three months."

"That's alright. If it's learning you want to do, then you've come to the right place." Remus reassured her. And his words did make her feel a whole lot better.

James then threw an arm around her shoulder. "Yeah, and don't worry. In this world, Hogwarts is the best place you'll ever find, and you're in luck because _we_ just happen to be the best of Hogwarts."

"Well aren't I fortunate."

"Very much!"

The other boys laughed at James self-important posturing, and she couldn't help but grin and laugh along. And it was nice, to laugh and share at this table. Little by little she felt she was regaining the person she had been. Soon, other Gryffindors joined in their joy as James started describing to her their most famous pranks at the school.

Meanwhile, from a few seats down the table, a red-headed girl watched them with an odd expression on her face.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** I'll take the time to thank my reviewers: _Casia4u_, _Dreamsb223_, _polykleitos_, _dm17_, _jujulicia_ and _KJA_. For the rest, while alerts and favorites are good, reviews let me know a lot better how the story is doing. What is working, and what isn't. It also lets me know about things I've missed, like was the case with _jujulicia_.

You commented about Jean's wand, which I had forgotten to write about. I fixed it in this chapter and you're lucky I speak Spanish, or else I would be a tad confused with the Portuguese. :)

Also, _Polykleitos_ I hope this chapter gives you a clearer picture on who Jean is.

Coming up next: The Slytherins welcome Jean to Hogwarts.


	5. The Welcoming Committee

**Chapter 4: The Welcoming Committee**

Jean woke up with a gasp.

She dreamt it again. Even awake she could still hear faint echoes of the shouting done in her dream. And like always, once awake she couldn't make sense of any of it. The images she'd seen quickly slipped away, only leaving behind the impression that she had been somewhere very bright.

Disoriented, for a moment she thought she was in her bedroom back at the Burrow, but one look at the flowing red curtains on her four poster bed had her remembering. She was at Hogwarts. The night before almost seemed a blur. A great big magical feast. Going into the common room and meeting her housemates. Heck, she was still processing getting admitted into the school, let alone being here.

The Weasleys had been absolutely stumped when her O.W.L. scores came. At first, the grades had no meaning to Jean, but then Molly had looked over her shoulder and shrieked. The brunette had been worried she might have not scored high enough to get in, but a sudden tight and enthusiastic hug from the Weasley matron had quickly informed her otherwise. She not only passed, but she did so with the highest grades possible. Except for that divining class, though somehow she didn't feel so bad about it.

But still, achieving the highest grades….Even she thought it simply impossible with the amount of time she'd been given. And taking the test, she knew she encountered questions about things that weren't _anywhere_ on the textbooks Dumbledore gave her. At the time, she had gotten so nervous, and unwilling to leave them blank, had filled in the first thing that came to her mind. But with those grades….all those instinctual answers had to have been _all_ correct. She couldn't have been that lucky, could she?

She was aware she knew things. Facts and procedures and silly inane details like the perfect charm to warm something to body temperature. The problem was that she didn't remember knowing them until something cued her in and when that happened only the information would come to her. The memories of her gaining this knowledge were nowhere to be seen. _That_ was what frustrated her the most. Forcing herself to remember those memories by pure will only gave her a migraine.

But one thing was for sure. Attending Hogwarts would definitely accelerate the process. Since she'd been there, she'd gotten the distinct sense of having seen—no _lived_ something similar.

Thinking about the day, and the possibility of remembering more, Jean eagerly got up and prepared for a new day. A look around the bedroom informed her that almost all her roommates had already gone thus not wanting to waste anymore time, she hurriedly dressed and picked up her book bag. When she stepped down from her dormitory she was pleasantly surprised to find James and his friend Sirius lounging by the stairs.

"Well it's about time!" said Sirius once he sighted her.

"What are you doing?"

"Why, escorting you to breakfast." said James as if the answer was obvious. "Can't have our resident celebrity getting lost on her first day. What would that say about Gryffindors?"

"That we're no-good prats who should be kicked in the arse every morning?"

Jean narrowed her eyes at Sirius. "I thought that's what _you_ said about Slytherins."

"It is! Which is why we're being down right gentlemen right now. Gryffindor only houses the finest." Both James and Sirius puffed their chests with self-importance.

She smiled shyly, touched by their thoughtfulness. "Well you shouldn't have. I could have made you late."

"But you didn't." said Sirius. "Look, right now you are like an ickle firstie, all lost and impressionable. It wouldn't be right to leave you all on your own, right Prongs?" He elbowed James.

"Pads, you honorable man. There should be a statue of you at Hogwarts." said James overdramatically.

Sirius took on a pensive expression as he actually pondered the idea.

"There should, shouldn't it?"

James then continued with a straight face. "Then me and Wormtail can deface it and fling dungbombs at it."

"Oi! Respect the face!"

Jean furrowed her brow in confusion. "But dungbombs are prohibited in Hogwarts….aren't they?"

Both James's and Sirius looked at each other then turned to her with twin mischievous smirks that rang warning bells inside of her.

"What?"she asked cautiously.

James sighted. "Oh you poor soul. You have so much to be taught. But like I said before, you're in luck 'cause _we_ are here to steer you right."

Jean raised her brows, doubtful. Somehow she didn't think that their definition of right matched everyone else's.

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The school hallways were filled with energetic students bustling about and chattering with friends while they made their way towards their respective classes. After a long break without practicing magic, it was one of the few times the young witches and wizards actually felt glad to assist class. Yet the liveliness and all around good moods of the students only helped accentuate the irritable mood of a few others. Such was the case of Severus Snape.

Sixth years had N.E.W.T Potions as the first class of the day and with his current surly mood, the sallow face Slytherin was dreading it. It usually was one of his favorite subjects. But after what happened at the end of last term, Severus knew that from now on, he would not enjoy it as much. Not only would he have to stand Slughorn's ridiculously jolly personality and over-the-top compliments, he would also have to see _her_.

It was undoubtable. Having shared a desk at Potions for the last five years, he knew she was very adept at making potions. Not quite like him, but still plenty enough to get on the N.E.W.T class. Which meant he would have to look at her hate him all year every Potions class. Probably in a lot of other courses as well.

As he thought about that, the Slytherin boy cursed both their intellectual prowesses. If only one of them could have been a little less smart. But then again, it was their mutual admiration towards all things scholar that brought them closer together in the first place. She had been his very first friend. His _best_ friend. The loss of her still felt raw.

The moody Severus entered the mostly empty Potion's classroom and took his usual seat in one of the back tables. He looked at the empty seat besides his. It was probably going to remain that way all year.

A few other students filed inside the classroom as the starting hour neared. Amongst them was Lilly Evans. The red haired girl walked in and started heading towards the back like she'd always done but halfway there she froze. At that moment, Severus glanced up and both of them stared at each other. There was a beat, and then Lilly was the first to glance away, quickly sitting down in a nearby table.

Snape scowled, then set about unpacking his scales and book unenthusiastically. He was so distracted in his sulk he barely registered someone had taken a seat beside him.

"So now you don't even rate a 'Hello'." said Asinus Avery. He was a Slytherin who had a long face and thin black hair.

"Shut up, Avery."

Avery pursed his lips.

"I don't see why you're so glum. In the grand scheme of things, she's just filth. You're better off, trust me."

Snape's scowl deepened, his hand coming to grip his wand tightly.

"Leave me." he said through gritted teeth.

The boy called Avery gave him a hard stare before getting up and joining his friend Evan Rosier at another desk.

It was at that moment that Jean Weasley entered the class room alongside James Potter and Sirius Black. Their loud laughter and discussion about something to do with cheese and breakfast caught the attention of the people inside the classroom.

Rosier's mood darkened upon seeing Jean.

"Fantastic." he muttered, displeased.

Meanwhile, Lilly had looked up at their entrance and now surreptitiously watched the three Gryffindors from the corner of her eyes while feigning intense concentration in unpacking and ordering her potion supplies. James Potter was quick to notice her sitting alone, a rare sight but one he expected given last year's 'break-up' with that git Snape. But as he approached her with the intention to join her, the sudden tensing of her figure deterred him. Clearly Lilly was aware of his intentions and her unreceptive posture demonstrated how unlikely it was that his antics would get him a seat by her.

_Maybe it's too soon._ he thought sadly. He had been trying to control himself around Lilly, but every time he saw her he found his new term resolution hard to comply with.

Sirius' voice broke through James' thoughts, as he impatiently called him from where he sat with Jean. James glanced one last time at Lilly and sighted, going over to the table at the front were his friend was. Not a second later after he sat, that Horace Slughorn's massive figure waddled in. Wearing some finely decorated lavender robes over a velvet brown petticoat; the Potions Professor pranced to the middle of the classroom and surveyed his students with a wide crooked smile.

"Good, good, we are all here. Settled down now" he said before his eyes fell on Jean. It was like a cheering charm was cast on him, as suddenly his eyes alighted and his smile widened further. "Ah, Ms. Weasley is it? Why let me personally welcome you and tell you that it's such a great honor to have you with us here at Hogwarts. How are you finding it so far? Haven't gotten lost yet, have you? Many new students do."

"I.. no, sir. I've had help."

Slughorn then noticed the two boys sitting on her sides.

"Ah, Mr. Potter" he said, completely ignoring Sirius. "Very courteous of you, very courteous indeed. Mr. Potter is a fine young man. A close acquaintance too." Sirius snorted at this, though it went unnoticed by the Professor who continued on. "I'm glad he's taken the time to assist you on this transition. Still, if you find yourself in need of some help, anything at all, don't hesitate to ask."

"Eh..thanks."

"Not a problem m'girl. Not a problem at all."

"Heh, one guess on who's going to be Sluggy's new fave." Sirius sniggered to James quietly.

And indeed she was on the road of being promptly 'collected' by Slughorn as he didn't waste any time to excessively praise her once he saw her Draught of Living Death. He even went so far as to tease his previous star students Mr. Snape and Ms. Evans.

"Better watch out for this one Mr. Snape. And you too Ms. Evans. Looks like this year we'll have us some competition."

While Snape seemed as if he wasn't the slightest bit interested, Evans actually looked gobsmacked. It was one thing that the new girl brewed a better batch than hers, as she had been a tad distracted in this lesson, but to have beaten Severus as well? His talent in this field had always been greater.

Yet, finishing first was not what had gotten Jean in a good mood. No, what really had her beaming was the fact that while making the potion she had experience something very…peculiar.

She had been following the directions detailed on her _Advance Potion Making_ book, her movements while preparing the potion being almost automatic. Then, at the very ending, the book ordered for some counter-clockwise stirrings until the potion reached the desired clear shade. She'd been in the process of doing so when, without warning, an image of James flashed in her mind quick like. In it, he had told her to add a clockwise stir.

When she turned to her right, James had been adding the Sloth brain to his cauldron. He hadn't even been looking her way. It had been strange. She had been about to get one with her stirrings, but then, on a sudden impulse, she did what 'Imaginary James' had told her. When the potion turned the right shade, she had been so astounded that she hadn't heard Slughorn coming from behind her.

Slughorn's praises barely registered over her contemplation. What had happened had been just like those answers at the O.W.L.s but so different at the same time.

Jean grinned.

It had been a memory.

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Charms class had been a success for the brunette Weasley as well. She had gained Gryffindor 20 points by identifying and later correctly performing an Impervius charm on her first try. Although she had been disappointed by only remembering knowledge instead of memories, she couldn't help but feel a tad giddy with Professor Flitwick's compliment of her steady wand handling. The hat most have been right because she did her best to impress the tiny Professor all throughout the class, looking for more recognition of her skills. By the end of class she managed to squeeze out another 10 points.

The Marauders, as the group of four Gryffindor she befriended called themselves, had reached a new level of admiration for the newly arrived witch. Walking out of the classroom on their way to lunch, they cheerily discussed the possibilities of Gryffindor winning the House cup this year, among other things.

"Move over Moony, I want Weasley to do my homework from now on." said Sirius.

"What? No!" exclaimed James. "_You_ get Moony. She's doing mine."

"That's not fair." complained Peter. "You guys always do better than me. I need her more."

Remus watched his friends bicker with a dry expression. "It's nice to know I'm appreciated."

"Don't feel bad Remus. She beat Evans to the punch too, and _she_'s the Charms ace. First Potions and now this. Bloody genius. Weasley's going to be our secret weapon this year."

In that moment Lilly walked by them, her stiff posture and the way she was gripping her books denoted clearly that she'd heard Sirius' comment.

James frowned, worried. "Evans!"

He made to follow but as soon as she heard his voice, she walked faster. James tried to reach her but she quickly lost herself amongst the crowd of students. He sighted in defeat, looking crestfallen.

"She's must still be mad." said Remus softly, watching his friend from afar.

Sirius snorted, though a frown adorned his face as well. "I don't know why. We showed her what that git was really like. She should be grateful."

Being new to the group, Jean was a little lost with the interaction. She had noticed James paying a lot of attention to the red haired girl both at Potions and Charms class. But the girl had clearly been doing her best to ignore every one of his advances.

"James has been crazy for Evans since start-of-term last year." explained Peter having caught on to her befuddlement. "He spent all year trying to get her to go out with him but then…..well something happened on our last days that made her a _little_ mad—"

"That's an understatement." interrupted Remus. "Right now, Lilly can't stand him."

"But, why?" asked Jean. "James seems nice."

"Yeeah…but she blames him, and us too I guess, for something that happened then. We…provoked an argument between her and a friend of hers—"

"Snivelly was no friend of hers!" Sirius broke in, looking mad. "And she clearly doesn't know what's good for her if she hangs it all up on Prongs and us. I say good riddance."

Jean absorbed these new facts, still feeling as if she didn't have the complete picture. She didn't know who Snivelly was to judge him but whatever the Marauders had done couldn't have been all good because the Evans girl seemed quite mad with them.

Yet watching James walk back to them at a less enthused pace than before had prompted in her feelings of concern and empathy. If she believed her memory, she had a 'James' once also. She would like to believe that if her 'James' was as sad as this one, she would have done her best to lift his spirits. Which was why she sprinted up to him and animatedly hooked her arm with his.

"C'mon you great Gryffindor. Why don't you show me what's so special about pumpkin juice."

Her smile became wider when he began to cheer up.

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While escaping she been escaping from Potter Lilly had been forced to take a rather long route to lunch. Because of that, she had arrived much later than the majority of the students, and so found that the only space available for her to sit on was at the very end of her table.

Tiredly dropping on a seat, ah she spaced out as a plate of chicken and mashed potatoes appeared before her. She hadn't been feeling so great lately. With the rising tensions at home between her and her sister Petunia (Her sister had gotten a new boyfriend and had the ridiculous idea that somehow Lilly wished to enchant him with her 'freaky' powers.), the loss of Severus, her oldest and dearest friend, and then the fact that there was an insane megalomaniac out there that wanted to eradicate people like her; Lilly knew that this year would be hard to live through.

Thinking about the current problems gracing the Wizarding world also made her remember why Severus and she were no longer friends. She glanced over to the Slytherin table and watched him conversing with his…friends. Not a few seconds after, the surly boy glanced at her as well. Lilly quickly blinked and turned her face away. She pretended to have been looking elsewhere, but what she saw now was no less entertaining. The Marauders were crowded around the new girl and it looked like they were trying some tasting test, feeding her different things from their own plates. James went so far as to shove a block of blue-cheese on the girls' mouth, causing her to gag and go into a coughing fit. Peter and Remus patted the brunette's back while Sirius broke out in one of his loud barks of laughter.

"Hey Lilly." greeted a friend of hers, Mary McDonald. The girl with short brown hair and chubby cheeks took a seat in front of the red-head.

"Hi…"answered Lilly, still engrossed by the spectacle the Marauders were creating.

Mary picked up on her distracted tone. She followed the red-head's line of sight to its subjects and understood.

"It bothers you, doesn't it?"

Lilly turned to face the other girl, brows knitted in confusion. Mary elaborated.

"Potter and his gang, with the new girl"

"W-what? No, that's…I mean…"

"It bothers me too." Both of Lilly's eyebrows rose at this but then Mary continued with a pout. "They've been hogging her since she came. Others have barely gotten to see her."

"…Right." Lilly turned down her eyes, occupying herself by sipping her pumpkin juice.

"Haven't gotten any classes with her yet but I hear she's a whiz. Recites everything like she's reading from a book or something."

"She's…good." admitted Lilly. "Intelligent."

"Huh. Good thing she got sorted into Gryffindor then, right?"

"Right." Lilly bit into her chicken leg, choosing to focus more on her lunch.

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It was a little after lunch that trouble presented itself for Jean for the first time. The Marauders and she were walking to the greenhouses for their Herbology class when, inexplicably, her bag had ripped open, spilling all her books, quills and inkbottles.

"Aww. What?" she lamented, crouching down to pick up her scattered belongings. It helped that the boys were helping her too.

Examining the frayed gash on the bottom, she didn't understand how it had broken. The bag was brand new. In fact it was the only new thing she owned. The shop owner in Diagon Alley had gifted it to her in exchange for an endorsement of the product if anybody asked.

It wasn't looking likely that it would happen.

"So it's Weasley now, is it." said a male voice.

She glanced up from her crouched position, seeing a black haired boy accompanied by a tall boy with sandy blonde hair. She hesitated in greeting them back when she caught that they were both wearing Slytherin robes.

"What's it to you Avery?" said Sirius stepping in front of her. He looked tense, as if he was ready for a fight. A glimpse to her back showed her that the other Marauders seemed prepared for a confrontation as well, making her quickly come to attention. Something clearly was wrong.

"Nothing. Just thought it could have been a better one. There are more..respectable names to choose."

Jean felt her face tighten as for the first time since waking up in the Hospital she felt..upset.

"I like Weasley." she said coolly.

The long-faced boy scoffed. "Tch, brain-damaged s'right."

"You're the ones who'll get their brains scrambled if you don't piss off." said James with a serious look.

"That a threat Potter?"

"No, it's a fact."

As the tension mounted, both Sirius and James along with the Slytherin boys stood at the ready, wand hands drifting closer to their pockets and twitching at the barest movements of their opponents. Peter gulped nervously watching the stand-off while Remus remained taunt, ready to get their newest Gryffindor out of harm's way in case something got started. Sensing an incoming fight, a crowd of curious students had rapidly formed around them, looking anxious.

"What is going on here?" said a voice with exasperation. Gryffindor Head Girl Dorcas Meadowes barged her way through the crowd to reach the source of all the attention. She was a dark skinned girl with a wide forehead and a no-nonsense disposition.

"Potter and Black. Should have known. Alright, break it up and get to class."

"You think we actually have to listen to you." said Avery derisively.

The Head Girl pursed her lips in anger. "You will if you don't want me to dock Slytherin out of the only 20 points they have, _and_ _then_ report you to Dumbledore."

Avery sneered at her but still stepped back.

"C'mon Evan."

Rosier, who had remained silent during the whole exchange, sent Jean a parting smile that actually made her spine shiver with dread. It was so cold and filled with dark promises. "Enjoy your stay at Hogwarts."

Sirius warned him off with a glare. "Oh she will. _We'll_ make sure of it."

"Get. To class." repeated the Head Girl.

Both Slytherins walked away toward the castle. When it was clear that no fight would occur, the crowd of students dispersed, leaving the Gryffindors alone. Sirius picked up a nearby ink pot from the grass and handed it to Jean.

"Those people, you better watch out for. Stinkin' Death Eaters, the whole lot of them."

Jean gasped. "Then why are they here? Does the Headmaster know?"

"I bet he does. He's real smart. Almost nothing gets past him." said James.

"The problem is" continued Remus. "that many of them have families in high places at the Ministry. Professor Dumbledore can't get to them without something concrete to back his word."

Sirius punched his hand in vehemence. "Don't worry. We'll just have to wait for those slimy prats to slip once. I tell you, I'll be glad to catch them in the act."

Jean stared back in the direction the Slytherins had gone. The tall silent boy had unnerved her. Compared with his friend, his hostility had felt more palpable, even in silence. To her, it almost seemed like he truly hated her. But that couldn't be. She had never met him! Still…she dearly hoped she didn't stumble upon him alone. It looked like the boy wouldn't mind letting slip his true nature just to get at her.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Okay, now I've introduced a few characters and we've seen a little into their personalities. You've also seen more of Jean.

One of the things I like about this fic is that it differentiates from a lot of other time-travels by starting in the past and going from there. You know who the traveler is but you don't know what happened. You don't know what she knows. The character itself doesn't know, which makes it more fun to play around with. I will tell you to be particularly attentive while reading because I'll be giving clues in small details that could tell you where in the future Jean came from.

I'll take the time to thank my reviewers: JemmadA, dm17, jujulicia, Dreamsb223, claire96, Nala Moon, Sic Vita Est, Riley Erin, amrawo and Jazmingirl.

Dm17: Yeah it was Lilly. And now you see more of her. This time I finished with a smallish cliffhanger.

Sic Vita Est: You made me look up your name. I was intrigued by where you got the idea.

Riley Erin: I'm really glad you love the fic. And don't worry, I don't mind the excitement at all. In fact, reviews like yours inspire me to write more. So, made your day. Took a little long to update as we are in that horrendous time were Professors decide to screw over students with work and exams.

Coming up next: DADA! The new Professor greets Jean. More Slytherins and Marauders. Also, Malfoy does not take losing well.


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